Search form

Search form

Cardiovascular prevention guidelines issued by the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology in November could increase the number of Americans eligible for statin treatment by 12.8 million, according to an analysis in the New England Journal of Medicine. Under the guidelines, about half of U.S. adults ages 40 to 75 would take statin drugs.

Related Summaries

About 9 in 10 patients with atrial fibrillation are eligible for treatment with oral anticoagulants under 2014 guidelines, compared with about 7 in 10 under clinical recommendations issues in 2011, according to an analysis in JAMA Internal Medicine. About 1 million more people in the U.S. could receive anticoagulants with the transition to the 2014 guidelines from the American Heart Association, American College of Cardiology and Heart Rhythm Society.

A study from the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation concluded more research is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of new guidelines that expand the use of cholesterol-lowering statins. Researchers said that under the guidelines, all men and most women in their late 60s and early 70s would be recommended to use statins for overall heart health, even if their cholesterol levels are normal. The study was published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Cholesterol guidelines should be more specific and make treatment recommendations beyond prescribing statin medications, Dr. Henry Ginsberg said during a debate at the American Diabetes Association meeting. Dr. Robert Eckel, who helped write the guidelines, said specific low-density lipoprotein targets were not included because the guidelines had to be evidence-based and the evidence points to statin drugs.

Cardiac nurse Annette Sciberras of Dearborn Heights, Mich., is one of 11 spokeswomen for the American Heart Association's 2014 Go Red for Women campaign that begins Friday, with National Wear Red Day, and runs through February. Sciberras, who had congenital heart problems as a child and was treated for cardiomyopathy in 2009. Sciberras welcomed the chance to be an advocate for heart health. "I'm glad we have a month to focus on it, but I'm glad to speak about it every day," she said.

Guidelines from the American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology advise clinicians to be more liberal in determining cardiovascular risk and prescribing statin medications to control cholesterol. The guidelines, developed over four years of study, also emphasize the role clinicians play in helping patients make dietary and lifestyle changes that reduce the chance of developing heart disease or having a stroke, including limiting sodium intake.